The Minister No One Wanted

[Protest or coincidence: Who dared become the new Minister for Magic?]

Silvan looked at the latest Daily Prophet and was surprised to find that the Ministry of Magic still had not chosen a new Minister for Magic.

He remembered that Hogwarts had not even gone on holiday when the previous Minister, Pius Thicknesse, was killed by Voldemort. Now nearly a quarter of the holiday had passed, yet the Ministry was still discussing the issue of a new Minister.

This was wartime. Voldemort could lead his army of Death Eaters into war against everyone at any moment. Were procedures really that important?

But as Silvan continued reading, he realized he had been mistaken.

This time, the Ministry was not wasting time. No one wanted the job. Everyone in the Ministry qualified to become Minister had refused to run, leaving the position vacant until now.

And the reason for it all was Voldemort.

Rufus Scrimgeour and Pius Thicknesse had both been killed by Voldemort not long after becoming Minister.

Pius Thicknesse in particular. Even now, many people could not understand why Voldemort had attacked the Ministry that day. He had shown no obvious purpose whatsoever.

If they had to name one, the attack's greatest impact on the Ministry had been the murder of its Minister.

It was hard not to wonder whether that was what Voldemort truly wanted—to kill every Minister for Magic and thereby break the resolve of the Aurors and Hit Wizards to resist.

That theory spread like wildfire through the Ministry and gradually led to the current situation.

People were afraid of being targeted by Voldemort, and no one wanted the position. But the Ministry—or rather, the wizarding community of the United Kingdom—needed a Minister to raise a banner for the other wizards resisting Voldemort and the Death Eaters.